Lydia Robins Hendrix focuses her practice at Burnette Shutt & McDaniel on employment law, assisting clients with variety of workplace issues, including equal pay, wrongful termination, discrimination, and more.
Additionally, Lydia practices government law, including holding public agencies and officials accountable through tort claims and Freedom of Information Act requests. A former teacher, she also stands ready to assist parents, students, and teachers with a variety of education law matters, assisting with IEP and 504 plans, due process proceedings, manifestation hearings, expulsions, Title IX and sexual harassment matters, and contract disputes.
Lydia served as a law clerk at Burnette Shutt & McDaniel for two years while studying at the University of South Carolina School of Law. A summa cum laude graduate with a concentration in children’s law, Lydia served as a student attorney at the school of law Education Rights Clinic. In that role, she evaluated cases and researched relevant state and federal law to develop legal strategy. She also counseled clients on courses of actions that could meet their goals and disabled students’ needs.
Lydia earned an impressive number of honors during law school, including nine CALI Awards. That prestigious recognition is bestowed on the top-scoring student in a class. She also was inducted into the Order of the Coif and invited to join the John Belton O’Neall Inn of Court as a pupil member.
She also holds a Certificate of Graduate Studies in Women’s and Gender Studies and a master’s in Comparative Literature from the University of South Carolina. She graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in modern languages from Clemson University and speaks conversational Spanish.
As a classroom teacher at A.C. Flora High School in Columbia, Lydia became deeply familiar with students’ needs. She often worked with administrators, counselors and other teachers to support students with Individualized Education Programs and 504 plans.
An artist and designer who once owned her own studio, Lydia often uses her talents to serve the community. She’s created promotional materials to benefit Sexual Trauma Services of the Midlands. Additionally, she’s served as a volunteer extended essay advisor for A.C. Flora High School International Baccalaureate students and as a second thesis reader for the University of South Carolina Honors College.